...John Carpenter’s Halloween: A Film Critique Michael Chapes Instructor David Hayes ENG 225 February 13, 2014 “It's Halloween, everyone's entitled to one good scare.” - Sheriff Leigh Brackett As long as there have been stories, there have been stories about the other, the unrealities we might categorize today as fantasy... Early myths in all cultures are populated by demons and darkness, early Egyptian mythology resounds with tales of a world beyond the physical, a realm of the spirits, to be revered and feared. Classical mythology is filled with monsters such as the Cerberus, the Minotaur, Medusa, the Hydra, the Sirens, Cyclops, Scylla and Charybdis, to name just a few. Every culture has a set of stories dealing with the unknown and unexplained, tales that chill, provoke and keep the listener wondering "what if..?" Horror films are the present-day version of the epic poems and ballads told round the fires of our ancestors. Horror movies of the 1970s reflect the grim mood of the decade. After the optimism of the 1960s, with its sexual and cultural revolutions, and the moon landings, the seventies was something of a disappointment. By 1970, the party was over; the Beatles split, Janis Joplin, and Jimi Hendrix died, while John Kennedy, his brother Robert, and Martin Luther King were all felled by an assassin’s bullet. These tragedies seemed to be just the first domino to fall, for then came Nixon...
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...I was walking in the dark room and a man jumped out at me so I ran. Last year a week before Halloween my family hosted a Halloween party. It was really fun because all of my friends were there with me. It took us around two months to set up for the party. Mostly because of the haunted house taking so much time. Also we had to get a bunch of food and put up all of the decorations. The last thing we had to do was to get all of the pumpkins for the pumpkin patch. When my family first arrived at the party I was amazed to see how many people where already there. We got the bouncy house, slide, and obstacle course set up. Then I went over to the haunted house because I was going to help out. I got my part but I didn’t need to do anything yet because it started at dark. I walked back over to the house and the extraordinary pumpkin pie sitting there. I got myself a piece and when I took a bite an explosion of sweetness and cinnamon blew up I my mouth. Once iu finished it all of my friends started to get here. I walked around with all of them for a while. We just talked most of the time. Then it started to get darker. Everyone met up in front of the haunted house so just to make sure we all knew our parts. Everyone did so we got into place, at this time the line already had about fifty people in it. I was working outside in the woods. That was the part in the front of the haunted house. I could smell the smoke of the fire rising from where I was at. The people started to come through...
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...Amazing Autumn The most amazing season of the year is autumn, or as most southerners call it fall. Fall is the time of year when football comes on, the leaves change, bonfires are in full swing, and anything pumpkin and apple is selling. The anticipation of all the little trick-or-treaters, and knowing that family will be around in just a few short weeks makes the heart warm from the inside out. Fall brings Thanksgiving, Halloween, and much more, it also starts to bring everyone’s heart out. Everyone has a bigger heart it seems when fall comes and makes it appearance for a few months, after that it leaves one longing for it until it comes back around. Fall is full of wonderful things that make the season what it is. At the beginning of an East Tennessee fall, all which is heard is “Go big orange!’ All people want to see are the mountains’ trees changing from the bright green and dull green colors into reds, oranges, yellows, and some deep purples. The changing of the leaves’ color and the yelling of Tennessee Volunteer fanatics are how one will know the wonderful season fall is upon us. When fall arrives, Starbucks starts to sell pumpkin spice lattes, and Wal-Mart sells pumpkins to carve. Some will start to see women and men drinking the hot and delicious pumpkin spice lattes and children planning what to carve on their pumpkins. With children planning to carve pumpkins, people will start to see the pumpkins with rather menacing, and some humorous, faces carved into them...
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...Organ of Halloween and all saints day Halloween dates back to over 2,000 years ago in what is now United Kingdom, Ireland and Northern France would hold a festival commemorating the end of the year. The festival was call the Samhain, which mint the end of the year signaled the end of summer and the harvest season which would spark the begging of a land and harsh winter to come next year, this harsh winter would cause a number of death to the people and there livestock. They would kill there livestock during the festival because they knew that they would not survive the winter anyway, in these event they thought the night before new years that a wall between the living and spirit world would open allowing spirits good and bad to mingle with the living and they would believe that they would cause trouble, ruin crops, and search for a way back for the after life. The Samhain was considered a magical holiday, no one knows how the Celtics practiced or believed while they held the festival, some say that the spirits who were unleashed are those that had died in that year, food and water was use to aid them or scare them away. Others say that the Celtics would dress in costumes and make noise to scare the spirits away. All saints day saints day is on November 1, it is the day the church remembers the martyrs who gave there life for what they believed in. Back before the date was official, they would tell stories of the heroic men and women of faith for the witnesses to Christ...
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...Sunday morning headlines are filled with news about how favorite celebrities rocked the Halloween costume scene Saturday night. While the awards may not be official, it seems that Heidi Klum is getting a lot of attention for her Jessica Rabbit costume. In fact, US Magazine has dubbed Heidi Klum the "Queen of Halloween." Looking at her costume, we can understand why celeb reporters are impressed. Evidently it took hours to create the sexy Jessica Rabbit look and involved a team of people to do the makeover.Prosthetics were used to create the sexy, fantasy costume. Designer Christian Siriano created her dress for the big Halloween bash that Klum hosted. All in all, it looks like Heidi Klum was a winner for Halloween, even though her costume...
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... Screams and gasps are heard throughout a mysterious Friday night. Rushing in to view late-night movies, crowds witness as a horror movie constructs its debut during its opening weekend. As an aspect of pop culture that is always popping up, especially as the nights begin to chill and the leaves fade away, the horror genre is scary. With aspects that are so apparent in the media, with trailers for the upcoming scary movie always appearing on our televisions and anybody around the block adding a little bit of spooky to their décor, spine-chillingarticles surround us, but are they actually okay for younger children to be watching? No. But what about the ever-changing group of teenagers? Correspondingly, more mature than their youthful counterparts, but unable to handle as much as an adult, the adolescent rang can be quite confusing. However, it appears quite apparent that the horror genre is appropriate for teenagers since they grow up with rather morbid stories ringing through their ears. In like manner, Scary stories also truly play a huge part in humans not turning into a bunch of airheads, and witnessing terrifying events help release fears without having to be in danger. The catch? Many teens can’t handle as large amounts of daunting experiences as others. To begin with, almost every child is told a kind of eerie tale from the time they were born. So, think the Brothers Grimm and Hans Christian Andersen, whose traditional stories could give anyone the creeps. Even well-known...
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...“Just a thin veil, between this world and that world of beauty and love, just a thin veil that hides the view of our spirit loved ones above! Gertrude Tooley Buckingham, “Just a Thin Veil.”” This is a quote given to help represent what Dia de los Muertos is all about. This holiday is near and dear to people in the Spanish speaking country as Halloween is something we do for the fun. Although they both have some similarities, they have several differences. Dia de los Muertos is celebrated on November 1st and 2nd while Halloween is held on October 31st and celebrate different things completely. Halloween is a time for scaring, pumpkins, ghosts, witches, and Trick-or-Treating. While Dia de los Muertos is a time to remember those they have lost,...
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...Mexican Urban Legend: It all started with an innocent sleepover party on October 31st. Isabella didn't know the other girls, but she was invited anyway. That night, that darkest and quietest of Halloween nights, they decided to play truth or dare. When it was Isabella's turn, she picked Dare and one of the girls said, "I dare you to the Donald Trump". Isabella thought about it for a few minutes, and accepted. The other girls gave Isabella a lit candle, pushed her into the bathroom, and closed the door. With the candle being her only source of light, she set it aside and stood in front of the mirror. Looking only at herself, she said his name 3 times, cringing and flinching with every syllable; “Donald Trump, Donald Trump, Donald Trump”....
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...In mid October, leafs would cover the ground forming what looked to be an orange ocean stretching for miles. Walking down the long, gravel road home after school grew on me nostalgically as I had did it so many times before. The sight of leafs and semi cold weather was a perfect sign that Halloween was right around the corner. As any other kid I was piqued with excitement and wonder to what costume I would wear that Halloween. Less than a week away to Halloween I had gotten severely sick. “But mom i'm fine enough to go walking down the street for peats sake!,” I said trying to hide my fatigue. “You’re too sick to go walking in the cold like this hun,” she replied optimistically. She had seen past my lie, the words echoed in my head, filling...
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...The house on maple street Two little kids were invited to a haunted house the night before Halloween. The two kids were Jake and Landon, they were best of friends until they went to the haunted house. It all started when Jake got a phone call. A strange man was outside of our house on the phone with us. He was wearing a big black coat and we couldn't see his face. Then he said,” to come to a haunted house tonight” and we said,” why not”. At 10pm we snuck out to the haunted house on maple street. We thought there would be a lot of people there cause it sounded cool and because he said there would be a lot of people. But when we arrived there was no one there. Then we saw that guy at the window he, he tilted his head and there was steam outside. When the steam went away then there were two guys at the window. We got a call from a phone number and it said Jimmy Eithan. They said come in or else. So there was steam again and they disappeared....
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...It was a warm and night and I was outside on Halloween. There were many children getting all of the savory candy in my neighborhood. I , on the other hand, was stuck passing out candy at my house instead of eating it. If you haven’t had to pass out candy on Halloween, then let me describe the interminable and torturous job that was thrown upon me on Halloween. First, everyone tries to take more candy than they’re supposed to, and honestly they already have enough candy so they should just take one piece. Also, it’s practically torture watching kids get candy while you have to sit alone and have nothing. Finally, rarely anyone says “Trick or Treat” anymore. That’s the whole point of halloween, so now kids get candy for walking up to your door dressed...
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...summer's end. The origin of Halloween dates back 2000 years ago to the Celtic celebration of the dead. The Celtic festival was held on November 1st, the first day of the Celtic New Year, honoring the Samhain, the Lord of the Dead. Celtic ritual believed that the souls of the dead returned on the evening before November 1st. This particular time of year signified the final harvest, a time of gathering and preparing for winter. Winter was a time of famine and some would not survive through the long months ahead. Samhain was a way of honoring those who had died, a celebration of the spirit remembered. The celebration included burning sacrifices and costumes. It was a common belief that the "veil" between the world of the living and the world of the dead was thinnest on the eve of Samhain. In Modern times, many have twisted this thought to evil intent, though its origin is much more honorable. The dead could return on this one night to the places where they had lived, and food and entertainment were provided in their honor. This symbolized a village existing in harmony with its past, present, and future....
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...1. In 1992 Halloween was on a Saturday and in 1993 Halloween was on a Sunday, but this year Halloween falls on a Thursday. 2. A lycanthrope is a werewolf. A werewolf is a creature of the night that scares kids. 3. Witch, Wolf, and Wizard are three words that have a W as there first letter. 4. The word is owl. The kitchen table is low to the ground. The word is bat .I have a tab in my folder. The word is night .I saw a big black thing. The word is spider. My brother prides his photo bombs. 5. Blood, Wizard, Ghost, Witch, Zombie, Wolf, Sharks, and snakes are eight scary words 6. Pins, pump, pin, pumps, in, pumpkin are six words made out of the word pumpkins. 7. The owl belongs to the bird group. There is about 200 different owl species. A group of owls can be called a parliament. 8. The term superstition means “a belief or notion.” 9. Some superstitions are when a black cat crosses your path you have bad luck, opening an umbrella inside and last but not least if you break a mirror it will give you bad luck. 10. There are about 206 in a human skeleton. 11. The book Dracula was written by Bram Stoker and it was based on a vampire. 12. A spider is in the arachnid group. Spiders are an arachnid not an insect. Spiders have around 40,000 different species. 13. Nocturnal means to be active during the night like owls and bats. 14. Mary Shelley was a short story writer, English novelist, and a biographer. 15. I would pick the seeds out and eat them, I could paint it, put...
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...For years people have been scared by horror movies and they continue going back. Alfred Hitchcock once said, "drama is life with the dull bits left out." Why do people like to watch other people get hurt and die while being scared enough to make them jerk in their seat? Movie goers like horror movies because people in general have dull lives. Males just use it as a opportunity to get close to their partner, while females like to get scared while in the presence of their "man." Every day people simply get up, go to work, and come home for supper before going back to bed. People believe that their lives are boring. That is why horror movies are popular. Movie goers like to be able to see blood, guts, fingers and toes, while having the ability to simply walk away. People in general want to have suspense in their lives but want to be able to turn it off. As for men, they like to be frightened as well as women, but most of all men like the sex appeal of horror movies. Almost every horror movie made in the last 20 years has a young attractive female actor running around mindlessly. If men were not attracted to this, then producers obviously wouldn't make movies this way. Men would also rather take their partner with them to see these kinds of movies. Men know their "female friend" will want to cuddle up! Women on the other hand want to have the fear factor but want their partner to be by their side. Most women movie goers will NOT watch a horror film alone. They want to...
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...Tonya Lewis Professor Neissner English 100 12 February 2015 How to Carve a Pumpkin! Ah, Halloween…it is that wonderful time of year when everyone in the neighborhood comes together to adopt new identities, gorge on free candy, and frighten small children. Littering their yards with cheap Styrofoam gravestones. There is nothing more representative of that crisp autumn night than the sight of a plump Pumpkin grinning merrily on one’s front stoop? People get very creative when carving pumpkins some people choose not to carve them but paint them. No one is born wise in the ways of goo and knives. These are learned skills. With this handy guide, a person should gain the ability to carve a wonderful looking pumpkin. To carve a pumpkin a person needs to pick out the one he or she chooses, clean all the goop and seeds out of it, and then carve and display it. First of all, the size, and shape of the pumpkin are very important. Be sure to choose the right size pumpkin to go along with whatever design they wish to create. People will be going to the grocery store or the pumpkin patch to find a pumpkin suitable for a Jack-O-Lantern makeover. One of my favorite memories as a child was going to the pumpkin patch and I would run through the fields looking for the perfect one along with my siblings. Keep in mind that the bigger the pumpkin, the longer it will take to clean it out. So choose a pumpkin that is between 12 and...
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